I am going to jump in at the risk of being labeled a idiot to support Rrog and hopefully provide an answer to the original question. I have listened to a Bose radio system, a Bose house custom system, and my Bose system in my 13 year old Mercedes (came with the car, would not have been my first choice) - none of these was anything special but they were pleasant for casual listening.
Way in the past I owned a pair of Bose 501's and they did several things well with their direct reflected sound including providing a sense of excitement and spaciousness that the Advents and JBL's etc of the time did not. I have no idea what they would sound like today because front ends and amplifiers have also progressed, but I would guess that they would not be hot in the highs as some designs are. Still today several brands such as Von Schweikert provide a refined, tunable ambience tweeter to provide a touch of the spaciousness from indirect sound. I moved up to the 901's and they again provided the above. They were missing exquisite highs, and a well-localized sound stage but still provided a enjoyable experience of wrap-around, lively sound. Given this I think that if gotten for cheap they may provide a nice home theater experience within a small budget. I do not know when they went out of production but given they may be decades old I would carefully inspect the drivers and surrounds and given a listen before purchase. Mitch4t hope this helps and let us know if you pull the trigger.
Way in the past I owned a pair of Bose 501's and they did several things well with their direct reflected sound including providing a sense of excitement and spaciousness that the Advents and JBL's etc of the time did not. I have no idea what they would sound like today because front ends and amplifiers have also progressed, but I would guess that they would not be hot in the highs as some designs are. Still today several brands such as Von Schweikert provide a refined, tunable ambience tweeter to provide a touch of the spaciousness from indirect sound. I moved up to the 901's and they again provided the above. They were missing exquisite highs, and a well-localized sound stage but still provided a enjoyable experience of wrap-around, lively sound. Given this I think that if gotten for cheap they may provide a nice home theater experience within a small budget. I do not know when they went out of production but given they may be decades old I would carefully inspect the drivers and surrounds and given a listen before purchase. Mitch4t hope this helps and let us know if you pull the trigger.